Sherdog.com will report from HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., at
approximately 4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT with play-by-play and live
results of
UFC on Fox 7, which is headlined by a lightweight title fight
pitting champion Benson
Henderson against challenger Gilbert
Melendez.

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Round 1
Mike Beltran is the referee for tonight’s opening bout. Romero
moves around the outside in a wide southpaw stance, stepping back,
out of the way of Starks’ punches. The middleweights trade leg
kicks and Romero goes up high with a side kick before faking a
shot. Romero jumps just as his opponent leans forward and cracks
Starks’ jaw with a perfectly placed flying knee. Starks crashes to
the ground and is powerless to defends as Romero turns out his
lights with thunderous left hands. Yoel Romero Palacio gets the win
via knockout at 1:32 of round one.

Round 1
Herb Dean is the referee for this lightweight bout. The shorter
Bowling picks at Njokuani with a quick left hook and an inside leg
kick. Another left connects for Bowling, clipping the backpedaling
Njokuani on the jaw. Njokuani ducks a punch and socks Bowling in
the ribs before backing out again. Uppercut lands for Njokuani but
Bowling answers right back with a hook, then chases down the
“Assassin” with a leg kick. Njokuani snaps off a couple jabs and
counters a Bowling straight with a body kick. The next kick from
Bowling is caught, and the lightweights exchange glancing blows
before splitting. With 90 seconds left in the round, Bowling plows
Njokuani down with a high double-leg in the middle of the cage.
They scoot over toward the fence, Bowling working to free up some
space in Njokuani’s closed guard. Njokuani posts and stands, still
held on the fence. Njokuani spins Bowling around and zaps him with
a knee and a speedy punch. Another pair of straight right hands
close out the round for Njokuani.

Round 2
Njokuani digs a couple shots to Bowling’s ribs as he moves around
the outside, mixing in a couple leg and body kicks. Bowling answers
with a chopping leg kick of his own and swipes with a right hand.
Bowling comes in to jab and gets popped with a counter. He keeps
moving forward on Njokuani, who feints a couple knees to get
Bowling to think twice. Bowling charges in to strike again, and
this time Njokuani is waiting with a clean left hook. Bowling
collapses to the ground and Njokuani strides off, allowing Herb
Dean to wave off the bout at 2:52 of round two.

Round 1
After 40 seconds of feeling out, Tillashaw steps inside and gets
caught behind the ear by a Viana left hook. Dillashaw drives
forward on a single-leg, takes Viana down and secures back control
in a scramble. Viana stands up with Dillashaw’s arms still wrapped
around him and Dillashaw stands to clinch him against the cage.
Nice elbow strike gets through for Viana in the clinch, and
“Wolverine” is warned for grabbing the fence as Dillashaw works to
take him down. Viana breaks free with just over three minutes left;
he comes forward on Dillashaw with wild punches and gets tagged
with a stinging counter. The pace slows midway through the round
with Dillashaw trying a couple high kicks that Viana goes
underneath. Dillashaw tries another single and gets shoved off this
time. Dillashaw misses a head kick, resets and slugs Viana with a
heavy straight right down the middle. Viana pops back up, but he’s
wobbly, and Dillashaw is all over him. The next right hook on
Viana’s temple nearly takes the legs out from under him again. The
Brazilian staggers backwards with Dillashaw throwing bombs. Most of
Dillashaw’s punches are being deflected until Viana falls down at
the foot of the cage. Dillashaw is able to unload on his prone
opponent there, forcing referee John McCarthy to wave this one off
at 4:22 of round one.

Round 1
Masvidal takes the outside, bouncing around out of the reach of the
rangier Means, who connects with a body kick toward the end of a
slow opening minute. Means sends half a dozen straight lefts down
the middle, eating a hook or two in return but also snapping back
Masvidal’s head. The lightweights square off in the middle now, and
Means clips Masvidal with a spinning elbow which Masvidal shrugs
off. Masvidal finishes a three-punch combo with a good right hand
and kicks Means in the gut. With just under 1:40 remaining,
Masvidal takes Means down with a single in the middle of the cage.
Means gets back up and moves onto the fence, where Masvidal tries
to secure the back. Means turns out of it and eats a left as they
get off the cage. Means is denied on a takedown attempt with 30
seconds left. He makes Masvidal pay with a body shot, but a leaping
knee proves ill-advised, as Masvidal tags him coming in with a
bunch of punches.

Round 2
Means catches Masvidal with a nice left straight early on. Masvidal
gets in on a single, puts Means on the cage and then takes him to
the floor. Means is active from his back, attacking with elbows as
he swings his legs around for a submission attempt. Masvidal stands
and gets popped with an upkick which affords Means time to stand.
Masvidal connects with a body shot and puts Means on the cage
again. Another takedown and now Masvidal is stacking up, landing
shots from on top and avoiding upkicks. Means throws up his legs,
maybe thinking armbar, but Masvidal slips them, forcing Means to
turtle. Masvidal stays on Means’ back as he stands; Means twists
around, only to be taken down again. Again, Means is busy from his
back with elbows, but now Masvidal is giving him some hard elbows
in return. Down to the last minute of the round, Means is stinging
Masvidal with elbows that have “Gamebred” cut open. Masvidal
postures up in the last 20 seconds and unloads with
ground-and-pound to close out the round.

Round 3
Means clips Masvidal with a left as they move around the outside,
then goes to the body, slaps with a right and dings Masvidal’s chin
again with the left. He catches the shooting Masvidal with a knee,
but Masvidal stays after the takedown and hits it against the
fence. Means drills him with a couple elbows before Masvidal turns
to take the back. Means is back on his feet and shoves Masvidal
away with just under three minutes to go. Means hits a standing
elbow, but Masvidal comes forward to hit a takedown. More elbows
from Means on the bottom, giving way to Masvidal’s postured-up
ground-and-pound. Means is going wild on the bottom, throwing
elbows with vicious intent as Masvidal holds him on the ground.
Masvidal stands and comes back down to Means’ open guard, allowing
Means to put off the fence and hit a sweep. Means briefly mounts
Masvidal with 10 seconds left, gets pushed off but still finishes
the fight throwing heavy elbows on top.

Round 1
Benavidez looks to chase down Uyenoyama, who backpedals for 45
seconds until Benavidez traps him on the fence. Uyenoyama shoots
and misses, escapes and throws a body kick. The kick is caught and
Benavidez trips him to the ground, slugging with punches at the
same time. Benavidez holds the leg and stands over Uyenoyama
kicking for a moment before letting the Shooto vet back to his
feet. A low kick catches Uyenoyama on the cup, but he takes only a
few seconds to recover. Ref Herb Dean restarts them and Benavidez
catches a kicking Uyenoyama with a right hand. Uyenoyama drops to
the ground, gets back up and takes another left. Uyenoyama lands a
couple body kicks but has to cover up as Benavidez marches forward
throwing combinations. A right high kick behind the ear drops
Uyenoyama along the fence. He recovers quickly and pummels with
Benavidez on the fence as they stand back up. Benavidez hits a
takedown with 70 seconds to go. Uyenoyama is allowed back up by
Benavidez, who is bleeding from the corner of his right eye.
Benavidez stays on the aggressive to finish the round without
landing anything significant.

Round 2
Benavidez tags his man with a pair of right hands in the opening
moments of round two. One minute in, another overhand right sends
Uyenoyama stumbling backwards, but he comes back for more. A flurry
of punches and kicks from Benavidez allows Uyenoyama to grab a leg
and spin to take the back. Benavidez uses the cage to defend, then
turns and puts Uyenoyama on the ground. Benavidez wants Uyenoyama
back up, and they go back to striking with 2:30 remaining. The Team
Alpha Male fighter misses with a head kick, but his left hand is
still getting through. Benavidez is just picking apart Uyenoyama,
continually moving forward and catching him with speedy punches and
body kicks. One liver kick has Uyenoyama covering up and trying to
circle away. Benavidez keeps chasing him and adds a scorching left
hook to the liver that makes Uyenoyama collapse.

Round 1
Jury lands a right, countered by a Nijem left in the center of the
cage. Jury hits a takedown, but Nijem drives on a leg, allowing
Jury to sprawl and isolate Nijem’s right arm. They’re in a
stalemate, with Nijem in side control, but Jury controlling his arm
and body. Jury ditches the arm and stands to reverse Nijem against
the cage before changing levels for a double-leg. He takes Nijem to
the ground, where Jury jumps on his kneeling opponent’s back. Jury
tries a body triangle, but his angle is awkward and Nijem dumps him
to the ground to take top position. Jury swings his legs for an
armbar, so Nijem stacks up against the fence to wait out the
attempt. Nijem gets his arm loose with 1:40 left on the clock, and
now he’s taken Jury’s back. Nijem pulls him to the ground and tries
to get hooks in; he can’t, and Jury is able to twist around and
take top position again. Nijem tries to single-leg Jury down, but
Jury spins out and almost catches Nijem with an inverted triangle
near the end of a back-and-forth opening round.

Round 2
Nijem catches a finger in his left eye and turns his back. Ref
McCarthy doesn’t step in right away, so Jury comes forward and
throws a kick to the body, drawing boos from the crowd. Nijem takes
a few seconds to recoup and the lightweights are quickly back to
work. Nijem is trying to work his jab while Jury swings power
punches, neither man landing clean. Charging in to throw an
overhand left, Nijem runs straight into a counter overhand right
from Jury. The punch has Nijem unconscious on impact, falling flat
on his back in the middle of the cage. Jury crashes down with one
additional right hand before McCarthy can intervene. It’s a
one-punch knockout for Myles Jury at 1:02 of the second round.

Round 1
The taller Carmont is pushing forward on Larkin, who lands hard leg
kicks despite being on his back foot. Carmont’s body kicks are
mostly being deflected, while Larkin keeps adding on leg kicks as
the middleweights find their range. Two minute in, Carmont gets
inside on a high double-leg on the fence, switches to a single-leg
and has to defend against a guillotine. Carmont momentarily takes
down Larkin, who pops back up and keeps defending. Carmont has
Larkin’s foot on his shoulder, while Larkin hops on one leg and
taps Carmont with punches. Carmont keeps after the single,
eventually relenting after catching some elbows from the defending
Larkin. They split and resume striking with about a minute to go,
nothing big landing for either man down the stretch.

Round 2
Larkin is buzzing Carmont’s head with high kicks, still moving
backward as the Tristar Gym representative lurches forward. Carmont
lands an inside leg kick, countered by a spinning oblique kick from
Larkin, then another. Larkin catches Carmont coming in with a
straight left, backs up and tags him with an uppercut as Carmont
shoots in. Keeping after the takedown, Carmont puts Larkin on the
cage with a single-leg. Larkin elbows Carmont in the head until
three minute in, when the Frenchman relents and they break. Larkin
keeps punishing Carmont with leg kicks, eats a jab, and leg-kicks
some more. Another takedown attempt from Carmont is denied by a
Larkin sprawl, but the second effort allows Carmont to finish the
double-leg and close the round on top.

Round 3
Carmont trips his opponent to the ground briefly, but long enough
to try and take the back as Larkin stands. Larkin scrapes him off
against the cage, gets tossed to the ground and hops up again to
resume striking. Carmont ducks a wide punch to hit another takedown
in the middle of the cage. Larkin throws up his legs immediately,
but he loses the omoplata as Carmont turns to set in Larkin’s full
guard. Larkin pulls rubber guard and the action slows. Carmont is
in half-guard now, and Larkin grabs his arm from underneath to
crank a kimura. Larkin can’t get the tap, but does use the armlock
to sweep and escape to his feet. Forty seconds left now and Larkin
picks at Carmont with kicks, finishing with a flashy attempted
cartwheel kick that misses.

Round 1
Mendes strikes first with an outside leg kick that gets Elkins
twisted up. Elkins is throwing heat over the top, looking to
counter the shorter man when Mendes comes inside. A Mendes right
hand catches Elkins, who stumbles backwards toward the fence.
Mendes has to rush across the cage to cash in on the opportunity,
but when he reaches his opponent, he makes it count. A huge right
hand goes off Elkins’ temple, sending him diving toward the fence.
Elkins is still struggling to get to his feet when ref Herb Dean
comes to save him, giving Mendes the win at 1:08 of round one.

Round 1
Mein takes the center of the cage and decks Brown with a standing
elbow as he steps to the outside. He backs Brown away with a pair
of rangy punches, but Brown comes back to sting him with a hard
left. Brown is aggressive now, cracking Mein with another left and
chasing him around the outside. Mein is on the retreat, dodging
punishment from Brown, until he slows Brown with a right off the
cage. A left hook stops Brown for a moment, but he catches a low
kick from Mein and shoves him off. Mein loses his mouthpiece and
the action is paused. They resume with about 3:20 remaining and
Brown closes in on his man with a left hook. Both men swing and
miss, then Brown -- who is bleeding from the corner of his right
eye -- tags Mein with a left. Brown has Mein in trouble on the
fence with more punches, then he grabs the Thai plum and works
knees up the middle. They break and meet in the middle, where Mein
unleashes a combo which finishes with a brutal left hand to Brown’s
liver. Mein is on top with 90 seconds left, slamming Brown with
left hands. Brown grabs hold of the Canadian’s wrists and slows the
offense, then throws up his legs for a triangle. Brown has it in
deep, but Mein goes to his knees and slips loose with 40 seconds
left. Brown stands to attack Mein with nasty knees to the body and
elbows in close quarters at the end of a thrilling opening
round.

Round 2
Brown sticks Mein with a stiff right straight as they move to the
outside quickly. Brown swarms with knees which mostly go off Mein’s
forearms; one gets through, however, and it seems to have busted up
Mein’s nose. Mein is on his knees, spraying blood on the canvas
while Brown unloads with punches. Ref John McCarthy calls for Mein
to fight back; he doesn’t, and Brown finishes off the youngster
with thumping elbows to the body. Matt Brown scores an impressive
TKO win at the 60-second mark of round two.

Round 1
There’s no touch of gloves as the lightweights meet in the middle
and Nate Diaz immediately begins jawing at Thomson. The former
Strikeforce champ is feeding Diaz a steady stream of leg kicks
early as they circle. Diaz walks down Thomson, eating another leg
kick for the chance to clinch up. Thomson won’t be clinched and
shoves off to continue circling and leg-kicking. Thomson catches
Diaz with a right high kick, foot on face, but Diaz walks through
it and keeps taunting his slippery opponent. The next high kick
from Thomson lands on Diaz’s neck, and Diaz catches the leg to take
Thomson down. Thomson is right back up, grinning and backpedaling
as he evades Diaz’s boxing. Diaz sticks a jab, follows through with
a left and Thomson is stumbling, though he may have caught his foot
on the cage. Diaz catches up and clinches Thomson on the fence
briefly before being reversed and shoved off. Thomson catches Diaz
with a couple right hands before dipping away. Diaz is winding up
his fist, but not letting it go when he has Thomson backed into a
corner. Now it’s Diaz with a ripping shot to the body and a clinch
on the fence. Thomson reverses and trips Diaz down with 30 seconds
remaining. Heavy elbows from Thomson on top have Diaz rolling
through and back to his feet. Thomson looks like he wants to ride
out the last few seconds, but Diaz has other ideas; the Stockton
native is still trying to have a word with Thomson when the round
ends.

Round 2
Diaz moves in to clinch up and catches Thomson on the cup with a
low knee. Thomson grimaces and ref Mike Beltran pauses the action;
Diaz does not agree with the decision and walks off shaking his
head. When they resume, Diaz is clowning on Thomson with some
exaggerated high kicks. Thomson ties him up on the cage, now one
minute into the round, and bashes Diaz with a short elbow on the
exit. Diaz answers with a right hand, walks Thomson down and hits a
takedown of his own. Diaz stands and slugs Thomson with a left
before grabbing a guillotine, which is quickly slipped by Thomson.
They break and Diaz is streaming blood from his right eye now,
though he’s still the one moving forward. Thomson clinches up
again, lands more elbows inside before breaking off and taking a
short left from Diaz. Ninety seconds left now and Diaz wipes blood
away from his left eye. Thomson catches him leaning left and
smashes Diaz with a clean right high kick to the head. Diaz is out
on his feet, stumbling backwards and then falling down as Thomson
batters him with a flurry of punches. More and more punches land
for Thomson on the ground as Diaz just rolls around, trying to stay
in the fight. Diaz gets to his knees, but he’s not offering
anything in return, and ref Mike Beltran has seen enough. The ref
halts the bout at 3:44 of round two, just as Diaz’s corner was
throwing in the towel.

Round 1
Mir uses kicks to back Cormier toward the cage, then Cormier comes
off the cage to close the distance. He eats a knee in the process,
but Cormier clinches up and blasts Mir with an uppercut on the
fence. Cormier drags Mir by the neck for a few feet, then just
misses with a knee. Mir’s face is reddened already, and another
punch from Cormier doesn’t help. Now it’s the clinch from Cormier
again, and a hard knee to Mir’s body. Mir is covering up as Cormier
rips a pair of hooks to the former champ’s ribs. Cormier is just
mugging Mir in the clinch, working the body with knees before
switching to hard uppercuts to Mir’s left side. Mir finally gets
off the fence with 1:40 remaining, but Cormier has him back on
there 20 seconds later. Cormier slips on a high kick and defends a
guillotine from Mir as he stands back up.

Round 2
Cormier leaps into the air with an athletic switch kick that misses
but draws an impressed look from Mir. They’re back on the fence
quickly, Cormier working more knees to the body in the clinch while
Mir just hangs there, unable to break loose. Cormier releases with
3:15 remaining in the round and backs out. He steps in and pops Mir
with a right before clinching up again. Mir tries some knees, can’t
score and eats a short elbow up top. Cormier lets him go again,
tries to tie up in the middle and gets the slip. Mir can’t resist
the next clinch attempt, and Cormier again pushes him to the
outside. Ref Herb Dean calls for action and Cormier obliges,
ripping a pair of hard right hands to Mir’s face as they disengage.
One minute left and Mir tries to come inside behind a long jab.
Cormier isn’t having it, stepping off to hit Mir with an uppercut
to the body and then putting him on the fence again. They break
with 15 seconds left and time runs out.

Round 3
Mir tries some high kicks which bounce off Cormier’s arms. They tie
up, for once with Mir on the outside, but Cormier quickly rectifies
that situation. Mir staggers off as “DC” releases and zaps the
ex-champ with a right hand. Cormier gives him time to recover,
though, and now Mir is coming forward, catching Cormier with a kick
to the body and a right before being clinched again. Mir lands a
knee to the body in the clinch; Cormier answers with a ripping
right to the ribs. Cormier catches a body kick, turns Mir around
and nearly captures his back. Mir spins out and Cormier has to
settle for a body shot and a left up top before pushing Mir into
the fence again. The ref calls for work again before breaking them
up with half the round remaining. Mir lands a left kick to the
body, tries to move in to add some more strikes and gets spun to
the ground. Cormier lets him up and clips Mir with an uppercut,
then clinches again. Mir’s back is still on the fence as the fight
enters its last minute, and now Dean calls for work again. Cormier
gets busy with right hands and uppercuts, breaking off to attack
and then grabbing hold of Mir again. They’re restarted with 30
seconds left. Mir sticks a right hand and backs Cormier against the
fence, his forearm across the wrestler’s throat just before time
runs out.

Round 1
Referee “Big” John McCarthy is the third man in the cage for
tonight’s main event. Melendez lands an inside leg kick and tries
to slug over the top when Henderson answers with a low kick
outside. Melendez kicks inside again but this time is staggered by
a straight counter from the champ. One minute into the round,
Melendez hits a takedown and goes down to Henderson’s open guard.
Henderson gets to the fence, posts and stands, eating a knee from
Melendez as he does. Melendez catches a kick and rushes Henderson
into the fence, then leaps on the champ with a flying knee to the
body. Henderson turns it around and presses Melendez against the
cage with a body lock. Melendez gets free after defending a trip
and socks Henderson with a left hook on the break. Henderson lands
a hard leg kick inside, takes one in return from the challenger.
Melendez catches a kick, tosses Henderson to the base of the cage
and drills him with a knee to the body. Henderson is back up to hit
Melendez with a straight left and a leg kick. Henderson tries to
jab and gets countered by a Melendez left hook, then tries a low
kick and is tossed to the ground by Melendez as the horn
sounds.

Round 2
Henderson swings and misses with a low kick; Melendez gives the
champ one inside, followed by a right hand. Henderson lands a left
straight in an exchange and has another low kick caught. Melendez
backs his man off with a shot to the body and the action slows as
Henderson moves around the outside. Henderson steps in with a knee
and defends a takedown as Melendez grabs the leg. They trade
positions and now it’s Henderson in the middle of the cage,
striking out on the challenger. Melendez catches a leg kick and
shoves Henderson backward, can’t capitalize as punches go off
Henderson’s arm. Down to the final minute and Melendez has reset in
the middle as he moves Henderson around the perimeter with leg
kicks and quick punches. Both men are landing in a furious exchange
in the middle, Henderson scoring with elbows and Melendez with
right hands. Henderson puts a jab in Melendez’s face, answered by a
right hand from Melendez to close out the round.

Round 3
Henderson opens up with leg kicks and then backpedals to avoid
Melendez’s strikes. A kick to Melendez’s lead angle sweeps the
Strikeforce champ’s leg, but Melendez is right back up. Henderson
scores nicely in an exchange, but he eats a huge right hand from
Melendez as he comes in to strike. Henderson looks hurt briefly,
taking another right from the challenger, but he seems recovered
with 3:00 left as he shoots a double-leg on the fence. Melendez
stands and gets pushed against the fence, where Henderson lands
knees to the body and a few punches before releasing the clinch.
Henderson zaps Melendez with a straight left and shoots after
taking a hard combo from Melendez in return. Melendez denies the
shot, so Henderson walks him down and then moves in to throw. Just
as before, Melendez is quicker to the punch and picks Henderson off
with a right hand. They trade in the clinch momentarily before
breaking. Henderson counters a low kick with a standing elbow.
Melendez lands an insde low kick, but then has leg kicked out from
under him. Henderson falls down, too, and finishes the round
slugging at Melendez from on top.

Round 4
The lightweights clash heads as they step to the middle and
exchange, and they’re warned to mind their heads by ref McCarthy.
Henderson scores with a hard leg kick inside and turns away
Melendez when he tries to tie up. Melendez lands a glancing
straight and denies Henderson’s shot. Melendez catches a body kick
but can’t bring down Henderson, who lands a knee to the body before
exiting. Henderson lands another kick to the bruised lead leg of
Melendez, then has a takedown attempt thwarted by the Cesar Gracie
protégée. Henderson lands a standing elbow, answered by a snappy
Melendez combo. Henderson is targeting Melendez’s thigh now, then
sweeps the leg and almost secures back control. Melendez slips out
and gets back to his feet, taking another slapping leg kick outside
with 60 seconds left in the round. Melendez is moving the champ
around the outside now, slugging Henderson with a pair of rights to
the body and then clinching to strike up top. The horn sounds and
this one is going to the final round.

Round 5
Henderson almost takes the leg out from under Melendez again. The
challenger stays up, dodges an uppercut but eats a left hand as he
backs off. Melendez pressures Henderson on the outside, clipping
with a right hook, then Henderson turns the tables and gets on the
outside. Henderson lands his inside leg kick-standing elbow
combination again before circling outside and forcing Melendez to
give chase. Another leg kick, another elbow and Henderson blocks an
uppercut from the challenger as the clock goes under two minutes
remaining. Melendez leaps in with a knee to the body, backs off and
allows Henderson to get off the fence. Melendez connects with an
uppercut in an exchange, then hits Henderson with a right as the
champ moves out. Henderson lands an elbow up top, countered by a
Melendez right to the body. Melendez sticks a jab, Henderson misses
with a spinning kick, and both men wait out the final few seconds
so they can throw their arms up as the final horn sounds.